African Bush Camps Foundation – Mambanje Community and School – and other schools as sponsored by the Foundation.
The current project is being run in conjunction with the Rotary Club of Sorrento and the Rotary Club of Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. We are currently trying to raise funds for several additional projects for the benefit of the school:
EDUCATION
Due to the poverty levels the children do not receive the nutritional needs of a growing child and usually only get one meal a day at home
  • We need to raise funds to continue the 2015 sponsorship of school fees for 79 students at $54 per student for 1 year, a total of $4,266.00 for the year.
    • REASONING OF NEED
As a large portion of the Mambanje community gets by with subsistence farming and they are not employed, funds to pay school fees are non-existent; this is not helped with the number of children who are orphans or vulnerable needing support from extended family members as a result of AIDS/HIV, Unemployment and high poverty levels. Without school fees and uniforms the children are not allowed to attend school and so do not get an education.
 
  • Feeding program – Cooking utensils to start US$ 200 Cost of feeding program is US$2566 per term (each term is 3 months), a total of  year $7898.00
    • REASONING OF NEED
Due to the poverty levels in the community, children do not receive the nutritional needs of a growing child and usually only get one meal a day at home and they arrive at school without having had breakfast, some of the students walking 4km one way to get to school and only eat in the afternoon when they get back home.
 
  • We provide the teachers with an incentive of tea-time supplies, at a cost of $60 per month, or $720 per year.
    • REASONING OF NEED
Mambanje is very remote and it is difficult to find teachers who are willing to stay so far away for the term. By providing a tea for them it is a little incentive to stay and build a bond with the community. The community also raises funds for a teacher from the community, often their salaries are not very high, and incentives such as these help to motivate and reward them for their hard work.
 
  • We would like to put the Happy Readers curriculum for Grade 3 in place at Mambanje, at a cost of $1000 for the whole set of books and teachers resources for the whole grade.
    • REASONING OF NEED
Increasing the Literacy of the students opens up opportunities to go to senior school and Tertiary institutes, get a job in the future and better their lives.
 
  • We are looking for Sponsors for the Secondary School Scholarship Program, we have 41 students in total for 2015, 8 of these are from the Mambanje Community. To sponsor one student costs on average just under US$2,000 per year.
    • REASONING OF NEED
The Guardians of the Orphan and vulnerable primary students cannot afford Primary fees and certainly cannot afford to send the children to high school so many of the children only study until the age of 12 years and from here drop out. Without a secondary education these children find it very difficult finding employment when they are older. The nearest high school is between 10 – 14km away for the students, and as walking is the only option, not only is it very far for the students to walk, there is also very real dangers involved with elephants and lion’s being prevalent in the area as the community is less than 2km from the National Park boundary which is not fenced. Currently, the majority of students who attend the local high school 14km away drop out within the first 1 – 2 years of high school, a figure that is higher for girls than for boys.
 
  • Other General Needs for Education
    • Printer, Projector, Computer Parts, Notice Board, Uniforms, School Safe, Age appropriate Library Books, Text Books, Art Materials, Music Materials and Instruments, School Phone, School Excursions, Clocks for the Classrooms and Office.
 
COMMUNITY INFRASTRUCTURE
  • Painting of the school has been quoted to cost $4500.00
    • REASONING OF NEED
The School is white and grey and looking very threadbare with the concrete and brickwork showing through in places. A new coat of paint gives an atmosphere of freshness and the children will be proud of their school property.
 
  • Building of an additional teachers house $ 37 100.00
    • REASONING OF NEED
The current 5 teachers all share a three roomed house on the school property. They live here during the school term of three months as the school is so remote. Having additional teachers accommodation not only gives them a better place to live with place for an indoor kitchen, it will encourage teachers to come to the community and then stay for more than one or two terms which is currently the norm and this high turn over makes any kind of positive relationship and continuity with the community extremely challenging. Additionally to this, the school ideally should have a minimum of 8 teachers and this is not possible with the current available accommodation.
 
  • Road to the community and school – US$7,000 has been raised for this so far, but any additional funds will be a great help as it will be build using manual labour and any additional funds can help to lease equipment to make it a lot more efficiently. To build to road using construction machinery would cost a total of US$70,000.
    • REASONING OF NEED
Currently this road is a dirt track requiring a 4 x 4 vehicle, it has never been graded and means that there is no public transport and the community and teachers have to walk the 15km to the main road for the nearest form of public transport. This means it is very difficult for the school to attract teachers to stay more than just a one term contract at the school, the opportunity of income generating projects is near impossible with no access to markets and visitors to the community are few and far between with people not willing to take their vehicle on the current track and the time it takes to get to Mambanje Primary School.
 
  • Other General Needs for Community Infrastructure
    • School Bus, Office Chairs, Library, School Fence & Gate, Water Tank at Teachers House, Teachers Toilet, Sports Ground
 
  • Building a Playground for the Children – US$3,000
    • REASONING OF NEED
During break time is one of the only times the children have to play and run around, when they go home they usually have to help their guardians by working in the fields, cooking, cleaning and taking care of the younger children.
 
COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT
  • Mambanje Sewing Project – A group of women have come together to start sewing school Uniforms for resale to the Mambanje Community, the project needs US$1,000 to start
    • REASONING OF NEED
To create an income for unemployed guardians so that they can raise school fees for the children in their care.
 
the Foundation is also on Facebook.
 
 
 
African Bushcamps Foundation - Mambanje School Project, Dete, Zimbabwe with number 30-2014-15 on the RAWCS National website.
 
 
30
2014-15
African Bush Camps Foundation - Mambanje School Project, Dete, Zimbabwe
 
To give support & assistance to Mambanje School and local community for improving educational facilities, the road, building a teacher's house, painting, general repairs and assistance with income generating projects. 
Manager  Rtn Elizabeth Bentley 
(H) 03 5986 6273  (M) 0418 356 464 
 liz.celebrate@bigpond.com 
Deputy Manager   (H)    (M)  Email:
Sponsored by the Rotary Club of Sorrento ,
District 9820
Yes
Yes
Available
 
 
Tax deductibility is granted through our “Rotary Australia Overseas Aid Fund” – ABN 21 388 376 554.
 
 
 
It is important that you understand that your funds that are given a tax deduction must be used according to the criteria stated by DFAT and the ATO.
 
Please note that donations made for school fees, books, uniforms and feeding programmes are not tax deductible under DFAT ( Department foreign affairs and trade) and the ATO ( Australia Tax Office current donation regulations. If you wish to donate for a student for any of these items please contact Liz Bentley direct on 0418 356 464